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THE UNITED NATIONS International Children's Emergency Fund
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Committee: United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) Topic B: Combating domestic slavery of children in the 21st century Written by: Guillermo Montemayor, Ana Cris Murrieta Salazar and Katia Peña
I. Committee Background
The United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) was created on December 11, 1946 in New York City, United States. Its purpose is to promote the rights and wellbeing of every child around the world. Also, the committee works with government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to overcome obstacles such as poverty, violence, disease and discrimination, that interfere in a child’s physical, emotional and psychological development. Currently, UNICEF works in 190 countries and territories. Its board of directors consists of 36 member states that are selected by the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) every three years. As of 2017, the committee is focused on providing vaccines, antiretroviral medicines for children and mothers with HIV/AIDs, nutritional supplements, emergency shelters and educational supplies to those most in need (About Us, UNICEF, 2017).
II. Topic information
A) History of Topic
Domestic slavery is the exploitation and control of someone, usually from another country or culture. It is a form of forced labor, but it also has its own category in the definition of slavery because of the unique challenges it presents. Likewise, a
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house or domestic slave is a slave who works and lives in the house of the owner. Child slavery is identified as the slavery of children at a young age. Many children are sold into slavery in order for their family to repay debts or to earn money. Children between the ages of 5-17 who become slaves often work in households doing chores such as cooking, cleaning, serving meals and caring for children. Currently, there are an estimated 168 million child laborers around the world (End Slavery Now, 2017).
Between 2005 and 2008, the amount of children sold into slavery grew exponentially. Numerous children were traded and bought to act as child slaves and domestic workers. There are around 5.5 million children working as domestic slaves. Child slaves are usually sold illegally on websites located in the deep web. An average child slave costs around 90-100 United States dollars. Young girls are usually the cheapest to buy and are favored over boys for domestic slavery. Due to the low price, child slaves are not considered investments. They are often seen as disposable which endangers their lives if they fail to complete tasks or reach adulthood (Free the Slaves, 2017).
Child slavery is a significant problem because it can physically wear out children and mentally harm them. Additionally, this also prevents children from having a normal childhood and keeps them out of school. Many children work for long hours, get very little sleep and do not receive the nutrition that they need. They are often under a lot of stress and anxiety to quickly and correctly accomplish tasks. Moreover, young girls often experience sexual abuse while working as domestic slaves. All of these factors can lead to premature ageing, malnutrition, depression, drug dependency and early pregnancy (Humanium, 2010).
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The countries with the most domestic child slaves are India, China and Pakistan. It is a very difficult problem to eliminate due to the fact that it is linked to social and cultural norms in many countries. For example, in some nations, families see it as a form of apprenticeship or education, so a young girl can become prepared for domestic life as a wife and mother. Domestic child enslavement is prevalent in nations that suffer from poverty, high rates of illiteracy and gender and ethnic discrimination. That said, it does exist in developed nations such as the United States and is a worldwide phenomenon, not one solely associated with a nation’s level of development (ILO, 2017).
B) Current Issues
Qatar: Child labor is forbidden for those who have Qatari citizenship, however, foreign born children are vulnerable to child slavery (Children of Qatar, Humanium, 2012). Also, domestic workers are not included in the nation’s labor laws. Draft laws have been written but have not yet been approved by the government. As a result, domestic workers are usually women and children who have entered the country illegally. They have no access to medical care, government benefits and cannot file a report with the police. If they escape from their place of enslavement, they will be arrested and detained until they can be deported. Without the correct paperwork, the detainment can last months to years (World Report 2016: Qatar, Human Rights Watch, 2016).
Japan: There are an estimated 290,200 enslaved people in Japan. The majority of these people are adults who work in industrial factories. Japan has made progress in trying to eliminate forced child labor within its borders. The Japanese constitution bans
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child labor for young people under the age of 15 (Japan, ILO, 2017). The country is also a supporter of combating child slavery. In 2013, it led the Red Card to Child Labour Campaign, which was created by the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour to bring attention to the growing issue of forced child labor in Asia and Africa (Red Card to Child Labour Campaign, ILO, 2013).
Greece: In Greece, the minimum age of employment is 15. However, many children work for their families on farms, in hotels and at construction sites. Due to the influx of migrants entering the nation in the past fifteen years, Greece now has a large population of foreign-born children who work on the streets. These children wash car windows, sell snacks and newspapers. They often are not paid. Due to this, in 2003, the government passed a law that punishes those who force children to sell items on the street. Those convicted can spend up to six months in jail. Currently, there are no available statistics on children that are forced into domestic slavery (Library of Congress, 2015).
Haiti: In Haiti, there is a traditional system of child slavery called Restavèk. In this system, children from poor homes are sent to homes of the rich to work as domestic slaves. The child’s family usually receives some monetary compensation. The child’s day is long, up to 14 hours of non-stop work, and full of difficult chores. The children often sleep on the floor, wear dirty clothes, eat leftover food and are beaten and raped by their owners. Free the Slaves estimates that there are 150,000 to 300,000 enslaved in this system in Haiti (Haiti, Free the Slaves, 2017).
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Brazil: There are about 325,000 domestic child slaves between the ages of 10 and 17 working in Brazil. Since the early 1990s, Brazil has been striving to eliminate domestic child slavery. According to Global Policy Forum, through a mixture of education, home inspections, laws and social assistance programs, Brazil has had an impressive decrease in the amount of children engaged in child slavery. Of course, more needs to be done, especially in rural areas. Most of Brazil’s focus has been on large cities and the poor populations residing within them (Pereira, Global Policy Forum, 2010).
United Arab Emirates: According to Human Rights Watch, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has a major problem with domestic slavery. Countless women and children are brought into the country under false pretences and are then trapped and forced to work as slaves. They work up to 21 hours, are not paid, cannot leave their place of employment, and are often beaten, raped and verbally abused. In 2014, the UAE made some changes to its labor laws which included providing domestic workers with a day off and at least eight hours of rest each day. However, many disregard this rule and domestic workers who are not paid are not included in its protection (United Arab Emirates, Human Rights Watch, 2014).
Bulgaria: Many children in Bulgaria are trafficked or forced into working at a young age. Hundreds of children each year are trafficked to other countries such as France and Greece. These children usually end up being sold into domestic or sexual slavery. Within the country, children from poor families are sold into domestic slavery. Their parents are paid a small sum of money and the children a forced to work long hours, cooking, cleaning and looking after small children, without pay. Bulgaria passed a law
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banning work for children under the age of 13, however, it has done very little to prevent child slavery within the nation (Children of Bulgaria, Humanium, 2012).
Hungary: Hungary is a source, transit and destination country for child slavery and trafficking. Romani children are particularly targeted by groups that kidnap and traffic children within the country and to other nations in Eastern Europe. Children sold into domestic slavery are severely mistreated. They are beaten and raped and refused medical treatment. Hungary does not have strong laws to combat this very serious problem. Moreover, it does not comply with international legal agreements and treaties to prevent forced labor and trafficking of minors. Not enough funding or training is given to law enforcement to investigate and prosecute those accused of owning child slaves or tracking minors (U.S. Department of State, 2015).
C) UN Action
Each year on December 2, the United Nations uses the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery to highlight the need for nations around the world to end slavery in all of its forms. Each year, this day is also used to educate about the impact child slavery has on the physical and emotional development of a child (UN News Centre, 2014). Moreover, the International Labour Organization has passed several conventions that protect the rights of children and aims to end child slavery. The Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, which was adopted in 1999, was written to end child slavery. It was signed by 182 countries, but does not explicitly mention domestic slavery. It also allows each signatory to define which forms of slavery are the worst, which could differ drastically country to country. So, while the UN does promote the abolishment of child
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slavery through awareness campaigns and education, it needs to do much more to target domestic child slavery (Ratifications of C182, ILO, 2000).
III. Conclusion
Child domestic slavery is a very serious issue that is increasing each year. Children are forced to work in homes cleaning, cooking and caring for other children without pay. They are often beaten, raped or verbally abused. Many countries do not have adequate laws in place to protect these children. In fact, the UN needs to do more to explicitly target this form of child slavery. The children forced to work usually suffer from long lasting mental, physical and emotional trauma which greatly affects their lives into adulthood. Therefore, the UN and its member states must address this urgent and pressing issue as soon as possible.
IV. Essential Questions
1. What has the UN done to prevent the domestic enslavement of children? 2. Are there any international laws that prevent the enslavement of children? If so, which ones? 3. What is your nation doing to combat the domestic enslavement of children? 4. Does your nation work with any organizations to stop this problem? If so, which ones?
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5. What impact does slavery have on a child’s physical, emotional and mental development? 6. What methods have countries used to decrease child slavery? Have these methods been successful? Why or why not? 7. Where is the domestic enslavement of children most prevalent? Why? 8. What is the International Labour Organization? What has it done to aid children enslaved in domestic situations?
V. Resources
"About Us." United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF). United Nations, 2017. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
"Child Labour." Humanium. Humanium, 23 Jul 2010. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
"Children of Bulgaria." Humanium. Humanium, 24 Sept. 2012. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
"Children of Qatar." Humanium. Humanium, 22 Aug. 2012. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
"Child labour and domestic work." International Labour Organization (ILO). International Labour Organization, 2017. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
ISRMUN 2017 Ave. Real San Agustín No. 4 CP. 66260 Garza García, N.L México. + (52) (81) 8625 1500 [email protected]
"Children’s Rights: Greece." Library of Congress. Library of Congress, 2015. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
"Domestic Servitude." End Slavery Now. End Slavery Now, 2017. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
"Haiti." Free the Slaves. Free the Slaves, 2017. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
"Hungary." U.S. Department of State. U.S. Department of State, 2015. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
"Launch of the “Red Card to Child Labour Campaign" in Japan." International Labour Organization (ILO). International Labour Organization, Nov. 2013. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
"National Labour Law Profile: Japan." International Labour Organization (ILO). International Labour Organization, 2017. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
"On Day to Abolish Slavery, UN urges end to modern-day scourge trapping 21 million." UN News Centre. United Nations, 02 Dec. 2014. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
ISRMUN 2017 Ave. Real San Agustín No. 4 CP. 66260 Garza García, N.L México. + (52) (81) 8625 1500 [email protected]
Pereira, Armand. "Domestic child labor: An overview of Brazil’s recent experience." Global Policy Forum. Global Policy Forum, Jan. 2010. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
"Ratifications of C182 - Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182)." International Labour Organization (ILO). International Labour Organization, 19 Nov. 2000. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
"Slavery Today." Free the Slaves. Free the Slaves, 2017. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
"United Arab Emirates: Trapped, Exploited, Abused." Human Rights Watch. Human Rights Watch, 22 Oct. 2016. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.
"World Report 2016: Qatar." Human Rights Watch. Human Rights Watch, 2016. Web. 31 Jan. 2017.